September 24

Hebrews xii. — 14. Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord:

15. Looking diligently, lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be denied;

16. Lest there be any fornicator, or profane person, as Esau, who for one morsel of meat sold his birthright.

17. For ye know how that afterward, when he would have inherited the blessing, he was rejected; for he found no place of repentance, though he sought it carefully with tears.

18. For ye are not come unto the mount that might be touched, and that burned with fire, nor unto blackness and darkness and tempest.

19. And the sound of a trumpet, and the voice of words; which voice they that heard entreated that the word should not be spoken to them any more;

20. (For they could not endure that which was commanded, And if so much as a beast touch the mountain it shall be stoned, or thrust through with a dart;

21. And so terrible was the sight, that Moses said, I exceedingly fear and quake:)

22. But ye are come unto Mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels,

23. To the general assembly and church of the first-born which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect,

24. And to Jesus the Mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel.

25. See that ye refuse not him that speaketh. For, if they escaped not who refused him that spake on earth, much more shall not we escape if we turn away from him that speaketh from heaven:

26. Whose voice then shook the earth; but now he hath promised, saying, Yet once more I shake not the earth only, but also heaven.

27. And this word, Yet once more, signifieth the removing of those things that are shaken, as of things that are made, that those things which cannot be shaken may remain.

28. Wherefore, we receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably, with reverence and godly fear.

29. For our God is a consuming fire.

The mount of the law, rising sheer from the plain on which the Israelites were encamped, was fenced about, lest it should be polluted by their touch. When Jehovah drew near, his presence was made awful by symbols of terror. But, through Jesus, our redeemed humanity is invited to draw near the mount of God as the seat of love, whose very holiness invests it with peace. Frederic the Great of Prussia, in one of his journeys, made use of the house of a Lutheran pastor for his accommodation for the night. On departing, he said to the pastor, "What shall I do for you? what preferment would you like?" — "Nothing, sire," answered the humble curate; "I have all I want, and am content." — "You are content!" exclaimed the astonished king: "then I will cause to be writ-

ten over your door, 'My kingdom is not of this world.'" Earthly kingdoms may rise and fall, earthly dynasties come and go; but we have a kingdom which cannot be moved. The time will come when every work of man shall be overturned; when the earth itself shall be shaken to its foundations, and this whole visible order of things shall depart like a scroll; but then shall appear in the brightness of the new heaven and the new earth that city of God which has been the longing of the saints in all ages. Even now we may come by faith to the blessed community of the heavenly Jerusalem; and, if that faith shall invite us to the steadfast and reverent service of God, our feet shall stand at last upon Mount Zion among "the spirits of just men made perfect."

APPROPRIATE HYMNS.]

Prayer.

[Nos. 4, 12, 20.

Thou only, O Lord! makest us to dwell in safety. We lie down at night under the shadow of thy wings; we awake in the morning to the light of thy love. We thank thee for another night of rest and comfort; for another day of life, health, and hope. We praise thee that thou didst create us with powers of knowing and of loving, and hast made this world so full of wonders and beauties to feed our minds with knowledge, and to stir our hearts with love and joy.

O Lord! may we be found faithful to thee in the duties of this day; and, amid its temptations and its trials, do thou sustain us, comfort us, keep us, and grant us grace in all we do to seek thy glory. May this household, which thou hast so blessed, serve thee, not at this altar only, but in all the walks of life! As we engage in the business of

the world, as we go into society, wherever we are, and whatever we do, may we remember thee, and do thy will! Oh! grant that every member of this family may be a child of God; a humble, faithful follower of the Lord Jesus Christ. Bless all dear to us who are absent from us. Do thou, O Lord! dwell by thy Spirit in the hearts and the minds of all our friends. We supplicate thy mercy for the needy, the afflicted, the bereaved, and the sorrowing.

Build up thy Church. O Lord! Fill our land with pure religion. May our rulers be faithful and just, walking in thy fear! And we beseech thee to bring all lands under the power and glory of the gospel of thy Son. In thy great mercy, O Lord! forgive our sins, and bring us unto thy heavenly kingdom, through Jesus Christ our Saviour. Amen.